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Illinois Girl, 8, Was Suffocated to Death After Being Abducted from Family’s Porch and Raped: Prosecutors

The 8-year-old Illinois girl who was allegedly sexually assaulted and murdered last Wednesday after being abducted while waiting for a church bus suffocated to death, the state’s attorney’s office confirms to PEOPLE.

Sabrina Stauffenberg was allegedly abducted Wednesday evening, authorities have said. Her body was found hours later near a vinegar plant in Olney, a small southern Illinois city. She had allegedly been sexually assaulted, which “caused great bodily harm to [Sabrina] that was life-threatening,” a spokesperson for the state’s attorney’s office tells PEOPLE.

According to Denise Haley, a friend of the family, Sabrina was allegedly “lured” off the family porch by Ramey. Haley said Ramey had met the little girl “on several occasions” and had dated one of Sabrina’s cousins.

“He was just walking home and he saw Sabrina standing outside and lured her away form the porch,” Haley tells PEOPLE. “She knew him so she would’ve went.”

Courtesy Chris Jennette

Haley says Sabrina last spoke with her grandmother before the abduction, telling her that the church bus hadn’t come. Sabrina’s grandmother hung up and called the church to ask why the bus was late. When she tired to call Sabrina again, there was no answer, Haley says.

“So she called [Sabrina’s] aunt and uncle and said she tried getting a hold of Sabrina. They were at home and they looked outside and saw that Sabrina was gone,” Haley says. “They started screaming outside for her name … They went to the laundromat asking people if they’d seen her. No one had seen her.”

Haley says the family contacted the police who tracked Sabrina’s cell phone to her body behind the vinegar plant.

Illinois State Police

“She was bound and they found her pants down around her ankles,” Haley tells PEOPLE. “They did find DNA on her.”

The spokesperson for the state’s attorney’s office would not confirm or deny the state of Sabrina’s clothing or that she had been bound.

Haley started a GoFundMe page to help the girl’s family in the wake of Sabrina’s death. A funeral for the little girl will be held Friday at Kistler-Patterson Funeral Home in Olney.

Ramey was arrested on Sunday and charged with first-degree murder and predatory sexual assault. His bail has been set at $10 million. He has not entered a plea and has not retained an attorney. Records show that he is expected to appear in court Tuesday afternoon.

Court records show that Ramey has been the subject of at least four separate orders of protection since 2014. He is not listed on the Illinois’ sex offender registry.

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